


Lily Evans and the Great Hall Spectacle of 1978

by generic_captain_13



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Ambiguously Happy Ending, Angst with a Happy Ending, Background Relationships, Eye Contact, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Light Angst, Like a Dash of Angst, M/M, Minor Alice Longbottom/Frank Longbottom, Minor Marlene McKinnon/Dorcas Meadowes, Minor Sirius Black/Remus Lupin, Mutual Pining, No Plot/Plotless, Not Actually Unrequited Love, POV James Potter, POV Lily Evans Potter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-26
Updated: 2020-11-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:13:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,796
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27721219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/generic_captain_13/pseuds/generic_captain_13
Summary: James and Lily contemplate their feelings for the other in the Great Hall.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Comments: 5
Kudos: 18





	Lily Evans and the Great Hall Spectacle of 1978

**Author's Note:**

> This is the only explicitly f/m pairing I will write about. Probably. I just had this mostly done from months ago, so I decided to post it. :)
> 
> I still don’t own any intellectual property. Though, it’s 2020; do we have any doubts?

It was no secret that James Potter fancied Lily Evans—it wasn’t like he kept it a secret. He practically shouted about it whenever he saw her. He would confess his feelings for her, she would reject him, and that was that. That’s how they had operated for nearly seven years. 

To be frank, James was losing hope that she would return his feelings. With each year, she only seemed to grow more hostile, and her insults only grew increasingly creative and cut deeper than they had a year prior. Though he had hoped that working towards being Head Boy in order to work with her would show her another side to him, it only seemed to help none. But he knew he couldn’t simply move on from her. No; she was nothing like Lucilla Finkle or Desdemona Worthington or even Annette Everly. 

What the entire Gryffindor population didn’t know, though, was that James F. Potter’s feelings for Lily Evans went deeper than anyone knew; in fact, he was in love with her. 

Sirius had made a joke, but James wasn’t listening. He had smiled, which seemed to appease his friend, who turned his attention towards Remus. (For the record, James F. Potter wasn’t blind; he could tell from the way Sirius looked at Remus that he, too, was in love. James had confronted him about it, and was warned not to say a damn thing lest he lose his bellend. Just the bellend, Sirius had specified. Even if he insisted that Remus probably felt similarly underneath his aloof exterior.)

Peter shoved a piece of toast in front of James’s face. “You okay, Prongs?” He had asked innocently. Peter was the only friend that wasn’t pining, hopelessly or otherwise. He had been going steady with Mary McDonald for a few weeks, the lucky bastard. 

“I’m alright, Wormtail,” he smiled weakly, his gaze drifting towards the one Lily Evans, who had quickly lowered her head and began shoveling eggs into her mouth. James sighed; he didn’t want a lady, he realized long ago. He wanted a woman.

Her long, flowing hair entranced him almost as much as her smile. When she laughed, time seemed to stand still, and James was rendered speechless. Though, to be fair, Lily always rendered James speechless, but he liked to pretend that he was more suave than he really was. 

He tried to convince himself it was okay; it would just be the five of them: Padfoot and Moony when they finally bucked up and confessed to each other, Wormtail and Mary, and James. When he thought about it, it really was depressing to be the fifth wheel alongside two happy couples. 

What could he do, though? Lily was disinterested, and he knew he wouldn’t be happy with anyone else. He recently tried to date Regulus Black (that was a nightmare, considering how horrendous Regulus was; it was like dating Sirius, but if Sirius was more of a spoiled brat). He wanted to make it work with him, but at the end of the day, he loved Lily Evans. 

She looked up at Marlene McKinnon, who was sitting across from her. With horror written clearly on her face, she shouted, “No!” The Great Hall went silent, and all eyes fell on her. She looked around and caught eyes with him. She quickly looked away and blushed. 

When it came down to it, James knew that if he didn’t marry Lily, he didn’t particularly want to get married at all. 

——

The days and the weeks blurred for Lily Evans, save for the brief moments she had in which she was afforded the opportunity to see him. She kept up in her classes, but she hardly paid attention to the first years attempting to start a toast war or the handsy couple down the table from her. No; her eyes were trained on James F. Potter: prankster extraordinaire, Quidditch Captain, and Head Boy. The boy that had professed his feelings to her many times, but as of late, he hadn’t even attempted once. Had he moved on? The thought made her stomach turn. 

On one hand, she would rather take the Cruciatus Curse than be caught staring at him, but in reality, she couldn’t help but wonder how soft his unkempt hair would be. How strong his arms would feel around her waist. How warm his mouth would feel pressed against hers, whispering about how much he loved her. If only he wasn’t such a massive bellend, she thought bitterly, leading to a train of thought that was less than appropriate for a Head Girl. She squirmed in her seat, her cheeks warming uncontrollably. 

It simply wasn’t fair, she decided. Why did she have to have a crush on such a morally reprehensible human being? Lily saw him turn his head, and she ducked her head into her plate and shoveled food into her mouth. Yes, she bitterly thought, he stares at you and you act like a pig. Wonderful.

Sometimes, she wished she were Marlene. She was dating Dorcas Meadowes, a fellow seventh-year in Ravenclaw, and they were seemingly soulmates. It was easy for them, as easy as two girls dating could be. They could love each other without worrying about their reputation being tarnished by their choice in partner. In fact, reputation didn’t matter at all to them; they didn’t have anything to prove. That’s not entirely fair, she realized. They live in constant fear for being together, while I live in constant fear for my life. At least I could marry whoever I fell in love with.

But who would Lily fall in love with?

“Lily?” She looked up to see Marlene McKinnon, one of her best girl friends, staring at her. 

“Yes?” She asked innocently. 

“You’ve been acting strange lately,” she said. “Is it James?”

“No!” Lily exclaimed, looking around the Great Hall to see who had heard her outburst. She locked eyes with James, looked away, and felt her cheeks heating up once again. She drew a deep breath. “Sorry. I think I’m a little under the weather.”

Marlene smirked. “Sure you’re not pregnant from eye-shagging him?” Lily glared at her. 

“I’m doing nothing of the sort,” she said defensively. 

Marlene hummed. “You know,” she said as she made eye contact with Lily, “it wouldn’t be the end of the world if you fancied James. He is a nice enough bloke. If I swung that way, he’d be at the top of my snog list.”

Perhaps that’s why she liked Marlene so much. She understood what it felt like to be an outcast, treated as other for simply existing. She didn’t treat her any differently because of her blood status; she was thankful Lily hadn’t made any disparraging comments. Rather, Lily protected her friends fiercely. 

“Before I started dating Frank,” Alice Longbottom (as everyone started referring to her as, despite not having married her boyfriend yet), her other best girl friend, chimed in, “I had a bit of a crush on James.”

Lily loved learning. She had been fascinated with the wizarding world the moment she discovered it, and sought to learn everything about it. Lily excelled in her classes because she spent as much time as possible studying. However, the idea of Alice holding James’s hand, pressing her lips against his cheek, or even confessing her love for him had not been on Lily’s agenda that day or any other day. She could have lived her entire life without knowing Alice could have just as easily started dating James Potter. On the outside, Lily’s expression was neutral, but she felt a conflicted rage all the same.

“I think you struck a nerve, Alice.” Lily turned to Marlene, who subtly eyed her hand. She looked down and realized she had been gripping her cup so intensely that her knuckles turned white. Or, Lily realized that once her hands stopped shaking so violently. 

She placed her cup down. Her eyes glanced towards Remus Lupin and Sirius Black; Remus had removed some jam from Sirius’s lips. It was rather obvious that they were dating as well, and in that moment, Lily realized that James had to know. And, judging by the way he was laughing (albeit sadly), he took no issue with that. How low was the bar for decent wizards? Did it make James a good person, or a decent person? Did it matter? In a way, it served as a reminder that she didn’t truly know the real James Potter. Who was he, when he wasn’t a regular menace? From the sad look in his eyes, Lily knew James was, at the very least, capable of some emotion, and she felt something tug in her chest. 

She wanted to ask what was wrong. 

The revelation disturbed and horrified her, but the more she let the thought permeate in her mind, the more she realized her distaste for him had been a feeling she had conditioned herself to feel. It had been a shield to protect her, but from what, she had to dig deeper. Was she afraid of it being a prank? No, that wasn’t quite right; Remus would never have allowed them to play with someone’s emotions. Did she fear rejection? No, James made it clear he fancied her. What was her problem? Was it the risk—oh. Oh. 

Lily said quietly, “Oh Merlin.” She chuckled humorlessly. “Bloody hell.”

“What’s wrong?” Alice asked.

Lily looked over at James again. He still had that sorry look on his face, but when he noticed Lily staring at him, his demeanor changed. Behind his glasses, his eyes suddenly brightened, and he smiled up to his eyes. He was stunning, and every moment she had shared with him had reeled in her mind. She remembered every time he had complimented her achievements and every time her shoulder brushed against his. And it was at that moment that changed everything. 

She felt her eyes water, but maintained eye contact. He said something to someone (likely Sirius, but she wasn’t paying attention). She swallowed hard. She took a small breath and sighed silently. Finally, Lily said, “I’m going to marry James Potter.” 

She didn’t register whatever it was that Marlene or Alice said in response as she watched as James was practically shoved out of his seat. He approached her shyly and without certainty. When he was right in front of her, he said, “He-hello. Um. Uh. We’re going to Hogsmeade next week, and, uh, I was wondering if—

“Yes!” Lily shouted. The Great Hall fell silent again, but this time, the silence was broken with a few catcalls (definitely from Sirius) and a few claps. Quieter, Lily said, “Yes, I would, um. I would love to go. With you. On a date. Yes.”


End file.
